File recovery and correction. Glary Undelete: recovering information from your hard drive. Video - How to recover damaged files

The article describes the principles and methods of software data recovery for users who do not have special knowledge.

If the value of the information is very high and/or the information carrier has physical damage- you should think about contacting specialists. In this case, the probability of complete data recovery will be highest.

When recovering data yourself, you should take note of the following information:

• Writing to a partition with recoverable information can reduce the likelihood of data recovery because data may be written over existing data. This also applies to installing data recovery programs and saving recovered files.
• It is advisable to minimize all work on the original drive to increase the chances of recovery. Good practice- creating a sector-by-sector copy of the drive and using various methods recovery to a copy.
• If the storage medium is physically damaged (this primarily applies to hard drives), then any impact can aggravate the situation. You should continue recovery yourself only if the cost of the data itself is lower than the cost of restoring it by specialists.
• Checking the disk for errors using Windows will create additional difficulties for data recovery, up to the complete impossibility of their recovery.

Disk structure

To better understand further actions, we will talk about the logical structure of the disk and file systems. If you are not interested in theory and need to quickly recover data, you can skip this section and go directly to the algorithm of actions.

MBR

Master Boot Record - the master boot record - is located in sector zero of the disk, contains part of the executable code, as well as information about the four partitions and which partition is bootable.

If the MBR is healthy, then after receiving control, the code contained in it reads the partition table and transfers control to the code contained in the first sector of the boot partition (VBR - Volume Boot Record), if it contains the 55AAh signature at the end of the sector.

Otherwise, you may receive an error message such as: "Reboot and select a proper boot device" or "Invalid partition table" or "Missing operating system". All of the above messages may occur due to a malfunction in the MBR or VBR, or for other reasons (the wrong boot disk etc.).

To recover a damaged MBR or boot partition, there are specialized utilities such as testdisk (Windows) and gpart (Linux), you can also use the “Recovery Console” with installation disk Windows. Their use will not always give a positive result when recovering data, since in addition to damage to the MBR and VBR, there may be other faults, so these options will not be covered in the article. And although there are enough instructions on the Internet for troubleshooting such problems, it is recommended to first recover important data from the drive, and then try to restore its correct operation.

File systems

Any partition containing a file system consists of the following parts:

1. The bootloader region (VBR), which contains information about the partition structure as well as executable code.
2. An area of ​​data that is divided into equal parts, called clusters, with each cluster having a unique number. The cluster size is set during formatting.
3. An area of ​​file system service data that can store information about folders, files, their names, attributes, as well as information about which cluster chains a particular file occupies.

The locations of the parts, as well as copies of the service data, depend on the type of file system.

Let's take a closer look at the most popular file systems on user computers: FAT and NTFS.

NTFS

The structure of the NTFS file system is shown schematically in the figure.

The partition begins with a boot area, which contains information about the partition as well as executable code. A copy of the bootloader is most often located at the end of the partition.

The next area is the MFT (Master File Table). It stores information about directories, files and their attributes. Typically, a disk area equal to 12.5% ​​of the partition size is reserved for MFT. The size of the reserved area can change (either up or down), and the table itself can be fragmented.

In addition, a certain area of ​​the section contains a copy of the first 4 service records of the table.

The user data area occupies the remaining space of the partition.

When deleting a file standard means The OS only puts a mark in the file record that the file has been deleted, and the space it occupies is marked as free. If, after deleting a file, no writing was made to the disk, the file remains in place and its recovery is possible.

When formatting a partition a new MFT is created in place of the old one. Initially, the size of the new table is small enough (several hundred MFT records), so some service records from the previous file system can still be restored. The more files were written to the formatted partition, the less likely it is to successfully recover data.

In this case, the data physically remains in its place, and some of the information about it stored in previous version MFT. These files cannot be read using standard OS tools.

Sometimes full formatting is called low-level formatting, which is a mistake. Low-level formatting is a technological operation that is performed during the manufacture of a drive, and it cannot be carried out using software methods.

In fact, only two types of high-level formatting are available from the operating system: full and quick. Quick formatting simply creates a partition table, and when full formatting First, the entire disk is checked for the presence bad sectors. In Windows XP, this check occurs using a read operation (that is, the data remains in place, and therefore, in terms of recovery, this situation is no different from the quick formatting discussed above), and in Windows 7, sectors are checked by writing, and the data is destroyed irrevocably, and there is no way to restore them.

FAT

The structure of the FAT file system is shown schematically in the figure.

At the beginning of the section there is a VBR, its copy is usually located through 6 sectors. After a certain number of sectors there is the FAT (File Allocation Table) file table itself, followed by its copy.

The file table stores information only about the chains of clusters that occupy files. File names and attributes are stored in directories located in the user area.

The user area in FAT starts from the root directory, all other directories and files are located in it. Directory entries point to the first entry in the file table, which contains information about the file's clusters.

When deleting a file the first character of the file record changes to special code, which means the file has been deleted. Clusters are also marked free and information about the chain of clusters occupied by the file is deleted, which complicates the procedure for restoring fragmented files. The data area remains unchanged, meaning the files can still be recovered.

When formatting a new file table and root directory are formed, the size of the table is indicated at the beginning. The data itself, in general case, remain on disk. What follows on the disk after the newly created table remains untouched (that is, information about the location of the files that were on the disk before formatting). As new files are written, directory and file structure data is replaced by new ones, reducing the likelihood of recovering existing information.

Data Recovery Methods

There are both purely software methods of data recovery, as well as software and hardware. The latter require special expensive equipment, relevant experience and knowledge, while software recovery using automated utilities is available to almost any PC user. It is this method that will be described below.

Recovering Deleted Files

To restore files deleted by standard operating system tools, you need to read service data, bypassing the file system interface. In this case, you can obtain information about the location of files that are marked deleted.

If no subsequent recording to the disk was made, then the required file can be read from this location.

Reconstructing a damaged file system

This method is used when the file system has been damaged or formatted. To reconstruct the file system, it is necessary to scan the entire partition to search for remnants of service data, on the basis of which the file table will be reproduced and, if successful, access to files and folders stored in the partition will be obtained.

Recovery after changing the disk partition structure

Specialized utilities scan the drive for file system structures that exist on the disk. Based on the scan, a list of possible file systems is built with a preliminary assessment of their state. Next step is to check the found systems for the presence of the necessary data.

Recovery by signatures

RAW-recovery - signature-based recovery, used in cases where other methods have not given satisfactory results. In this case, the drives are scanned sector-by-sector for the presence of known signatures (a unique set of characters characteristic of a specific file type).

For the found files, neither the names, nor the logical location, nor the attributes are known. In case the files are fragmented, this method recovery will be ineffective.

If the signature of the beginning of the file has been found, then the next task is to find the end of the file. Typically, any next known signature is used for this, which may give unsatisfactory results. Modern programs use methods that use residual data about the file system and its features to improve the result. In some cases, such algorithms can help restore even a fragmented file, which is impossible when using standard algorithms. For example, the IntelliRAW algorithm used in the UFS Explorer family of programs works in conjunction with file system reconstruction algorithms and uses this information to determine the end of files. This implementation allows you to achieve better results than using simple methods recovery by signatures.

A rough recovery can give a good result when the files on the drive are located sequentially, without displacement or fragmentation. For example, when recovering files from memory cards of cameras, camcorders, etc.

Data recovery algorithm

We will present the algorithm using the example of a free program that is available for non-commercial use in the former CIS. It is compact, easy to use and does not require installation. Uses commercial software algorithms and produces results at the level of professional utilities. NTFS, FAT and exFAT file systems are supported.

You can download it from the support page on the official website: .

The archive with the program must be unpacked onto a partition different from the one from which the recovery will be carried out. If the system has only one partition, the best solution The disk with the recovered data will be connected to another computer. If this is not possible, you can unpack the program to an external drive (if it is large enough to save the recovered data).

Section selection

After unpacking the program, you need to run it. On the left side of the main window you can see the drives connected to the system and the partitions on them. If the desired section was automatically found and displayed in the list, select it and move on to the next item.

If the required partition is not in the list (for example, the drive was formatted or partition sizes were changed), you can search for the lost partition or set it yourself (only if you know the exact parameters of the partition). You can select these functions in context menu drive or on the toolbar.

Let's take a closer look at the lost partition search function:

After launching it, a new window will open in which you need to click on the “Find Now” button, which will start a search for known file systems on the disk. As they are found, the list will be supplemented with information about the sections found. The most likely options will have a blue icon, which means the partition is in good condition. If the icon is yellow or red, then the found partition is either very damaged or found incorrectly (some types of files can give this effect).

From the list of partitions, you need to tick those that most closely match the parameters of the partition you are looking for: beginning (in sectors), size (in sectors and megabytes), label, file system type.

If the value in the "size" column less than value in the “beginning” column, then most likely this section is not valid. Typically these "bad" partitions are disk images stored on the drive.

To continue, click the “Use Selected” button.

Scanning

If you selected a section with file system NTFS, you will be offered a choice: run a full or quick scan.

The scope of application of quick scanning is to search for files deleted using standard operating system tools. This scan only reads service records in the file table and analyzes them.

Full scan is used in most cases. This involves searching for remaining service records in the file table, virtual reconstruction of the file system, and sector-by-sector scanning using IntelliRAW technology. Gives excellent result, but takes longer.

For FAT16/FAT32 and exFAT file systems, only full scan mode is available. This is due to the fact that due to the nature of these file systems, in many cases a quick scan is not enough to effectively recover data.

Saving results

After the scan is completed, the program will show the result of the reconstruction in the form of a tree of files and folders that were found.

Blue icons display elements that are visible by standard operating system tools, red icons indicate those that have been deleted or lost and are inaccessible by standard operating system tools.

In addition, service folders will be available:

• contains files and folders whose location could not be linked to the root directory
• contains files sorted by type found using signature recovery (with IntelliRAW technology)

To save the recovered data, either in the element’s context menu, select “Copy to...”, or click the “Mass selection” button on the toolbar, then select all necessary elements and click the “Save Selection” button.

Let us remind you that it is necessary to save the recovered data only on a partition different from the one from which the recovery is being carried out - otherwise the data may be damaged.

Needless to say, when using computers, you may encounter situations where some documents cannot be opened due to damage. The same goes for work. installed programs, and even the entire operating system, when a message is issued that a certain file cannot be opened.

How to recover a damaged file of any type? Many users can only guess about this. However, there are several fairly simple methods that allow you to perform such operations. Let's look at the most common situations.

What are corrupted files?

Before we begin to resolve the problem of how to restore a damaged file, let us clarify what such objects are.

In fact they are regular files, in which, due to some kind of failure (software or physical), the internal structure is damaged, making their use impossible.

A distinction is made between partial and complete damage. In the first case, some part of the information in the file is saved, in the second, it undergoes a radical change.

Causes of failures

But what could cause such an unpleasant phenomenon? As a rule, these are violations in work tough disks or emergency closing of applications in a situation where the system or program simply physically cannot cope with processing large volumes data, sudden power outage, exposure to viruses, etc.

Viruses and the consequences of their intervention will not be considered now. But for other cases, in particular for system ones Windows files, office documents or multimedia, several simple recovery methods will be given.

How to recover damaged Windows files?

Let's start with the cornerstone - system files, without the integrity of which Windows will work with errors or not work at all.

The main method to solve the problem of how to restore a damaged operating system file(s) is to use a universal tool that is available in any OS. This is a rollback to a previous state, which can be called from the backup and recovery section or when booting a damaged system, when a rollback to a certain point starts automatically.

You can also use boot by pressing the F8 key (for Windows 10 this process is slightly more complex), where the last working configuration is selected from the start menu.

If starting the OS in normal mode is impossible, boot should be done either in safe mode, or with installation media, and then use the command sfc /scannow, entered at the command line, on a booted system, be sure to run with administrator rights. If the start is made from removable media, the command will look longer: sfc /scannow /offbootdir=C:\ /offwindir=D:\windows (C is the partition with installed system, but the drive letter may be different).

In some cases, when the system boots, you can use DLL program Suite, which reloads missing or damaged dynamic libraries systems. But for this, the Internet connection must be active.

Archive recovery

It is often possible to encounter damage to compressed directories called archives, when archiver programs display messages about the impossibility of opening them (most often with CRC errors).

How to recover this type of damaged file? For this, modules of the programs themselves are used. For example, in the running WinRAR application, using the browse button, you need to find the desired object, select it and click the fix button in top panel. Next, you just need to select the location to save the corrected file, its format and wait for the recovery process to complete.

How to Recover a Damaged Word or Excel File Using MS Office

Another unpleasant problem is damage to office documents. Let's see how to restore damaged Excel file or Word (although this technique works for all Office documents).

As a rule, all applications have autosave enabled by default at certain intervals, so if the program is closed unexpectedly and restarted, you will be prompted to restore the recent document.

In the case of other files, you should first launch the desired application and use the file opener, selecting the damaged object. Next, the open button is used with the choice of open and restore.

Any office program restores damaged files fast enough (it all depends on the amount of data).

Third-party utilities for recovering damaged office documents

If recovery using office editors does not produce results, you can use utilities like Word Repair Free, Easy Office Recovery or Office Fix.

The first utility is free, the second two are shareware. With their help, you can save only a certain number of files, but the third program has the ability to create a screenshot for subsequent conversion of the graphic format to text or spreadsheet format.

Multimedia Applications

With multimedia, not everything is so simple. However, with minor damage, a way out of this situation can be found.

For video, in its simplest form, the HD Video Repair Utility package is used - free program, which restores damaged files of any format, made in the form of a portable version that does not require installation. In it, first, use the Choose movie button to select an object, and then press the Scan button.

At the first stage, if the damage is severe, an error may be displayed. Then we use the Choose reference movie button and, so to speak, slip a normal file into the program, after which we press the scan button again. At the end of the process, a directory with the restored file that was opened initially will appear in the application directory. The essence of the process is that, based on an analysis of the structure of normal files, the program “learns” how to restore damaged objects.

As for graphics, the question of how to recover a damaged file of this type is completely easily resolved by using the RS File Repair utility, which is capable of recognizing the vast majority of graphic formats known today. Using it is quite simple due to the fact that it has a built-in “Wizard”, thanks to which even an untrained user or a novice can handle the restoration.

Sometimes when solving the problem of, for example, how to restore damaged files on a flash drive (this means the graphic format), you can try to open objects in the built-in Windows application Paint, and then simply save them in another location, replacing the format. It is this program that is believed to have no special requirements for damaged files and is capable of opening even things that professional editors do not understand.

If speak about sound files, here you cannot do without the help of professional and semi-professional audio editors, although you can find simple utilities for analysis. In most cases, simple programs do not produce any effect, but in terms of audio restoration, programs like Adobe Audition or Sound Forge give unsurpassed results. The process itself looks quite complicated, so there is no point in dwelling on it.

Conclusion

To sum it up, it’s worth saying that restoring damaged files of almost any format is not such a difficult task. But we considered only the main types of files, since it will not be possible to describe everything in one article. The selected techniques are designed for users who have never encountered such problems and are easy to use.

If you have lost valuable files, do not rush into depression: recovering information from hard drive It’s possible, and you can do it yourself.

A file deleted from the hard drive actually remains on the same sectors of the disk. In the file table it is marked “zero”. As long as this information is not overwritten, the files are recoverable.

The most important thing is to choose the right tool. We have selected best programs to recover data on your hard drive. In this review, we will list the necessary functions of the programs and briefly describe how they work.

2. TestDisk – recovery of deleted HDD partitions (Windows / Mac OS / Linux)

TestDisk is a program for recovering data and hard drive partitions. Supports file systems FAT, NTFS, ext2, etc. Works only from command line, detailed documentation will help you understand the commands.

It makes sense to use the program in cases where data has been lost

• as a result of errors in the file table,
• in the presence of bad blocks
• at accidental deletion HDD partition.

In such cases, other utilities such as Recuva or PhotoRec may not be able to cope.

With TestDisk you can restore boot sectors, fix tables in FAT, Master File Table - in general, fix errors on your hard drive, which are often the reason for deleting files.

If the operating system does not boot and/or you are running Linux, you can make a byte-by-byte copy of the HDD partitions and restore files safely, avoiding overwriting.

If TestDisk did not help or seemed complicated, test PhotoRec (see below), since the programs are distributed in a common archive.

3. PhotoRec – recovery of photos and videos on your hard drive (Windows, Linux, Mac OS)

PhotoRec is a cross-platform program for recovering data from disk. Searches by file signatures, does the best job of searching deleted images and videos.

In total, PhotoRec covers about 300 file types and 480 file extensions. Data recovery is carried out both on the hard drive and removable media – flash drives, memory cards.

You can download the program for free for desktop. Major file systems are supported, including NTFS, FAT, exFAT, ext2/3/4, partially ReiserFS, etc.

Included with the program is the TestDisk console utility. Let us remind you that it is intended for restoration deleted partitions, fixing the boot record on the disk and other errors on the HDD.

Note. Despite the fact that data recovery on the disk takes place in read mode. When saving files, you must specify a directory on another drive - otherwise the deleted data will be overwritten.

4. Diskdigger for PC

Diskdigger exists in desktop and mobile editions. We will be looking at the Windows version. It supports HDD, SSD, SD cards and USB flash drives and virtual disks(VHD/VDI, etc.) connected to a computer.

The program offers you to choose one of two scanning options – Dig deep or Dig Deeper.

Accordingly, the Dig deep method is suitable for recovering files on a hard drive after quick formatting, deleting files to the Recycle Bin, deleting any data in the FAT, exFAT and NTFS file system.

The Dig Deeper recovery method will be extremely useful in more complex cases involving the deletion of information. This method involves searching for files by signatures, bypassing the file system. Scanning in Dig Deeper mode will take much longer than Dig deep.

It should be noted that desktop version Diskdigger has a user-friendly interface and allows you to flexibly configure the search for files on the HDD. It is convenient to use previews when restoring and saving results as a list or thumbnails. In general, Diskdigger is designed for photo, audio and video recovery, similar to PhotoRec.

5. EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard (Windows)

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard is an excellent, although not free, program for recovering deleted files from the HDD. However, 500 MB can be restored without purchasing full version. To do this, just download the 30-day trial version of the product on the website.

Scenarios in which the EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard will be useful:

• Deleting files bypassing the Recycle Bin (via Shift+Delete)
• Removing an entire HDD partition
• Fast hard formatting disk
• File corruption, or bad blocks
• Hard disk partition is defined as raw

The program interface is simple, it will be useful for beginners step by step wizard settings. It allows you to choose file types, scanning type (Quick Scan / Deep Scan). As the scan progresses, you can view the results in a convenient preview window.

That's why EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard is great for image and video recovery.

Data Recovery Wizard supports data recovery from hard drive, SSD, memory card, USB flash drive.

The list of supported operating systems includes Windows 8, 7, Vista, XP, Server 2008 and 2003, 2000 and older.

Stellar Phoenix Windows Data Recovery supports more than 300 file extensions, suitable for recovering deleted partitions on HDD/SSD, ignores read errors. The description states that the main file systems for searching files are FAT, NTFS and ExFAT. However, Phoenix Windows Data Recovery can go around and detect files regardless of the file system type. To do this, use a signature search, which is activated by the Deep Scan option.

The Technician version of the program will be indispensable if the files were in a RAID archive and one of the array disks failed. Other versions of the program also have useful additions For Reserve copy. However for home use Home or Professional versions will be optimal (cost from $60 to $100).

7. Minitool Power Data Recovery – a program for recovering files from a hard drive

Minitool Power Data Recovery is a program for recovering data on damaged, faulty hard drives, emergency hdds - those that are not detected on the computer.

Some features of the utility:

• Power Data Recovery recovers entire disks, works with dynamic disks large sizes (> 1 TB), RAID arrays,
• when scanning, bypasses errors, cyclically reads data, bad blocks, switches the head to a “sparing” mode when reading information from the disk,
• works with FAT 16/32 file systems,
• The “deep scan” option allows you to find deleted files, which are not detected during normal scanning,
• Free recovery of 1024 MB of any data.

How to recover information from a hard drive

The program has a step-by-step data recovery wizard. After selecting Logical drive and clicking the Scan button, a list of Scan Results will be displayed. Files are sorted by File name, Size, Creation date.

Video on how to work with Power program Data Recovery:

8. Undelete Plus (Windows)

Undelete Plus is a shareware program for recovering deleted files. Supports recovery:

• office documents and mail,
• photo, video, mp3 audio,
• files after emptying the Windows Recycle Bin,
• system disk after formatting/reinstalling Windows.

Undelete Plus works on all versions of Windows and supports storage devices with the FAT or NTFS file system.

Similar to Recuva, the program determines the probability of recovery for found files. You can sort results by type, set filters by time and size.

9. Glary Undelete: recovering information from your hard drive

Glary Undelete is a free program for recovering deleted files from HDD, easy to use, with a convenient user interface.

Glary Undelete recovers files from hard drives, SSDs, any removable devices - memory cards, USB flash drives etc.

There are no settings, to get started you need to click Start. There is a filter by name/date/size. The sidebar allows you to group results by file extension. The probability of recovery for each file can be found in the “Status” column.

10. R-Studio - a popular program for recovering data from a hard drive

11. Puran File Recovery - a simple program for recovering from FAT/NTFS drives

This is not to say that Puran File Recovery stands out from other data recovery programs in the review. However, we list the main functional features this free product.

Puran File Recovery works with Windows 8, 7, Vista, and XP. The application is available in portable form and for 32-bit and 64-bit Windows versions, therefore does not require installation. The program has a simple and fast interface.

FAT12/16/32 and NTFS file systems are supported. If the disk is deleted or has a raw format, the Full Scan option will allow you to detect the partition and then recover data from the hard disk in normal mode.

There are two modes for recovering data from HDD - fast and deep (byte-by-byte) scanning of deleted information. During deep scanning it is not easy search is underway Based on entries in the file table, Puran File Recovery scans known patterns, trying to detect a particular format. By the way, the utility can recognize about 50 file types.

Found files are restored preserving full paths and names (if possible). Before saving to disk, the user can sort the recovery results and familiarize themselves with the files in preview mode.

Other disk recovery programs

• Data LifeSaver (now "EASEUS Data Recovery"): professional recovery of damaged information in file files FAT systems and NTFS.
• Data Rescue PC3: program for searching deleted files from Prosoft Engineering, supports FAT and NTFS file systems
• Disk Drill Pro for Mac OS X: a program for recovering files and SSD partitions for Windows and Mac OS X.
• FileSalvage: data recovery from disk, resuscitation of deleted/damaged information
• Recover My Files: works under Microsoft Windows 2000 and higher, supports FAT, NTFS and HFS file systems, RAID arrays.
• Ontrack EasyRecovery: recovers damaged data on NTFS, HFS, FAT 16/32 partitions.

Answers to readers' questions

1. The lid of a Lenovo laptop was accidentally slammed shut. I don’t know whether it was because of this or not, Windows itself reinstalled itself and all the information from the Desktop disappeared. Then a window with a red Windows cross appeared. There it was suggested that we print out the instructions and save them on a flash drive, something about the hard drive and not use the computer until we restore the hard drive. What should I do, I would like to recover files on my hard drive :-)

2. There were files on the Desktop. They disappeared. I found only the names in MS Word. Please help me return them to the desktop so that I can work with them as before.

Answer. The answer will be short. See programs for recovering data from a hard drive in the list above. Indicate in the list the system drive on which WIndows was installed. If you need to return some files from the Desktop, when scanning, specify “[system drive letter] > Users > [User name] > Desktop.

After reinstalling the system, photos and videos were not copied to HDD and apparently left. Is it possible now to recover data from hdd for free?

Answer. The question is imprecise in its wording, but it is not difficult to answer. Use any recovery program mentioned in the article. Actually, before the data recovery process, it is extremely undesirable to use the hard drive to write and read information, so if possible, install the software on another medium and do not work in the OS before you begin restoring data on the disk.

Yesterday I deleted the entire folder on my hard drive. There was 1 GB of content, there were many folders and other valuable data! I looked a few times and there was nothing there. Then I went and deleted the entire folder, but it turns out that there were my hidden photos and videos... How to recover data from a hard drive?

Answer. Almost any data recovery program is suitable for these purposes. For example, R-Studio, Minitool Power Data Recovery, Power Data Recovery or Recuva. In general, there is no shortage of such programs, choose any one, read the instructions on Softdroid and start recovery.

I uploaded files to the mail.ru cloud, after a few days the files disappeared. Before that I logged in from another device - the files were there! Is it possible to recover files for free?

Answer. Yes, recovering files from your hard drive is quite possible if you have synchronized files uploaded to the Mail.ru cloud with your PC. To do this, you need to use R-Studio, Minitool Power Data Recovery or other tools. After installing a file recovery program, point it to the drive where the synchronized cloud files were located. Further actions, I assume you know.

My son's favorite game on the computer crashed. I wanted to download it for him again, but he doesn’t want to start it from the very beginning. It says "application error". Will data recovery programs help? Thanks in advance.

Answer. In theory, you can recover files (deleted game saves) using hard drive data recovery programs. To do this, find out where the saves of a particular game are stored, run a search for files, etc., everything as usual when restoring. However, it is not entirely clear how your saves were lost and under what circumstances this happened. It is quite possible that you do not need the help of data recovery programs, since many games store saves in user folder Windows is separate from the actual gaming application. Reinstall the game and see if you can open saves within the game.

The information has been erased. After recovering lost files, I have damaged files that I don’t know how to recover. The information is very necessary. How to recover a damaged file? Tell me the way out.

Answer. This information is not enough to answer your question correctly. If you restored files yourself and as a result received some of the information in a damaged form, this means that the deleted files have already been overwritten new information, and this process is irreversible.

It is less likely that you used low-quality recovery software or selected the wrong scanning mode. However, we suggest that you try to recover damaged files again using

To understand what a damaged file is, let’s first consider what an undamaged file is, i.e. holistic.

An integral file consists of blocks written to some storage medium. For simplicity, further in the article any media will be called a “disk”. Keep in mind that the fundamental principles of file storage are similar for disks, flash drives, CD/DVDs and many other devices, so when we talk about “disk” we are actually talking about a broad class of devices.

The integral file lies on the disk in the form of blocks, as shown in Fig. 1. When reading a file, the blocks that make up the file are compiled in a certain sequence, and the result is an image of the file in memory, ready for processing by the program. This is how most of the files we use every day are opened - Word documents, Excel spreadsheets, pictures and everything else.

The attentive reader will note that the blocks that make up the file are located in different places on the disk. This is an important factor that has a great influence on both the corruption and subsequent recovery of files.

Rice. 1. Integrity file

Damaged file

The damage can be either critical, when the user completely loses access to data, or partial, when only part of the data is lost, but access to the rest of the information, untouched by damage, remains.

An example of critical corruption would be a situation where a file cannot be opened/recognized by the original application in which it was created. If the application does not handle such situations strictly enough, the result may be critical error(“crash”) of an application that tried to open a damaged file.

Main causes of file corruption

• Disk failure
• Impact of a virus or antivirus file
• Application errors
• User Actions

Recovering files after being deleted from disk

In such cases, you usually have to resort to utilities to recover deleted data. These applications work directly with the file system and, if the file information has not been completely cleared from the system, restore the file to a greater or lesser extent. But there are possible pitfalls here.

Firstly, new data could have been written to replace the accidentally deleted file if you were actively working with the disk after deleting the files. The reason is that the system uses the space freed up after deleting files for new data.

Another common case is the inability to completely restore the sequence of blocks of a deleted file. In this case, applications, using internal algorithms, try to select the expected blocks related to the files, which does not always bring the expected result.

Summarizing possible damage when restoring files after deletion, the following typical problems can be identified:

• Part of the file has been overwritten by new data.
• It was possible to restore part of the original file, but blocks that were not related to it were erroneously assigned to the file. The illustration shows this situation of file corruption.

Rice. 2. File recovered after deletion

Tips if you need to recover deleted files:

• If you are not very competent, seek help from specialists.
• Immediately stop any operations with the disk on which the deleted files were located;
• Use the deleted file recovery utility.
• Be prepared for the fact that deleted files may need further “treatment”; OfficeRecovery programs and services will help you with this.

Disk failure

It is especially unpleasant when corrupted blocks contained data related to important files. In this case, errors occur both when trying to read and when trying to write. It manifests itself like this: let’s say that part of your Word document stored in a damaged block. Microsoft Word when trying to open a file, it tries to read this piece from the disk, receives an error from the system about the impossibility of carrying out the operation, as a result, the word processor displays a message about the impossibility of opening the file.

If the file can still be read from the disk, ignoring bad blocks, it will have the damage shown in Figure 3.

Rice. 3. File from damaged disk

Tips for recovering files from a damaged disk:

• If the disk is damaged in fragments, some files can be read from it without damage.
• Files that are unlucky enough to be written to bad blocks need to be extracted using special utilities, and they will almost certainly require further treatment.

Impact of a virus or antivirus

Detailed description viruses and their types are beyond the scope of this article. But it is worth noting that some types of viruses can deliberately overwrite user files with junk data in order to cause harm. Many viruses also do this during their “reproduction” process, writing parts of files with their distribution service data on the user’s computer and other machines, as well as for camouflage purposes.

If we, by definition, do not expect anything good from a virus, then how does it happen that the source of damage is an antivirus? Generally speaking, the principle of operation of an antivirus comes down to reading the contents of a file and searching in a sequence of byte chains (“signatures”) characteristic of viruses known to it. Situations cannot be ruled out when user data can be mistakenly interpreted as a virus chain and cut out from the file to ensure security. Although in Lately Antivirus algorithms have undergone significant improvements, such situations are periodically possible. In Fig. Figure 4 shows a generalized view of the file after it has been damaged by a virus.

Please note that virus/antivirus damage is not related to the disk. From the point of view of location on the disk and reading from it, everything is fine with the file. Damage zones do not coincide with the boundaries of blocks on the disk, but can be either smaller or larger than blocks.

Rice. 4. File damage as a result of virus activity, antivirus or due to a program error

Application errors

Here is a typical scenario: a three-dimensional image was edited in Photoshop, significant edits were made, then when trying to save the changes, the application crashes for one reason or another. The file turns out to be partially written and thus damaged. When you try to open the saved image again, the application cannot cope with this, since the internal structure is not complete.

This is just one example of potential causes of application failures. The “clinical picture” of the damage is close to what can be seen when damaged by viruses/antiviruses. To get an idea of ​​it, see Fig. 4.

• If the case of damage is isolated, then it can be almost impossible to get to the bottom of the cause of the failure. Too many factors and their combinations can lead to an error. As a preventive measure, make an emergency backup copy your data.
• If damage occurs regularly, then it is worth thinking about under what circumstances it occurs. To get rid of the problem, you have to look in several directions. Enter the error messages given to you into a search engine - often, along with a description of the error, you will find its solution. Update the program that is corrupting the files. Install operating system updates.
• Damaged files must be restored using special utilities.

User Actions

We are not inclined to blame users for damage, considering situations like the one described rather as imperfection of computer systems.

Here are a couple of simple tips for users:

• If possible, never edit files located on media that can be easily disconnected from the computer (flash drives, external drives, etc.). Use these devices only for transporting data, and copy files to a permanent drive on your computer before editing.
• Use the OS function " Safe removal"if it is available for connected media. This will allow the system to write to the media the data that is in the system write buffer.
• Do not press the “Yes”, “OK”, etc. buttons without understanding exactly what the program or system is asking you. This may be a request to delete your important information.

How to recover damaged files

The basis of recovering user data is understanding the internal structure of each type of file that requires repair. After analyzing the damaged file, the remaining intact/undamaged user data is consolidated into a new, complete file. Data that has been erased, unfortunately, cannot be restored.

Applications for recovering damaged data work according to the following scheme:

• The damaged file is analyzed based on knowledge of the data format.
• If possible, the corrupted service data is corrected to allow access to the maximum amount of user data.
• If the file storage structure allows, then heuristic algorithms are launched to search for lost data. Lost data refers to information to which links in the file were lost as a result of damage to service data.
• The extracted user data is compiled into a recreated file of the original or related formats.

What should you expect from the results of file recovery? Each file corruption is unique in its own way and affects the amount of data that can be recovered. If a file has damaged service data that is irrelevant for recovery, then we can often talk about 100% recovery user information. If a piece of important information is overwritten, then it is possible to recover only the data that remained untouched during the damage process.

Often users do not understand this fact and expect to receive their file in its original form after recovery. Unfortunately, this almost never happens.

When assessing the quality of recovery, it is recommended to focus on whether data that is subject to further use has been recovered from the file. If this is the case, then the restoration should be considered successful, since it has already saved time and effort in recreating the original set of information.

OfficeRecovery utilities recover data from more than 50 different types files, from Word and Excel to Exchange and Oracle. If you encounter file corruption, use OfficeRecovery programs and services. The company's specialists are also always ready to work on complex special projects for corporate data recovery.

OfficeRecovery Software.

For many users, the data stored on the hard drive is much more important than the device itself. If the device fails or was inadvertently formatted, then remove it from it. important information(documents, photographs, videos) can be done using special software.

To restore data, you can use an emergency bootable USB flash drive or connect the faulty HDD to another computer. In general, the methods do not differ in their effectiveness, but are suitable for use in different situations. Next we will look at how to recover data from damaged hard disk.

Method 1: Zero Assumption Recovery

Professional software for recovering information from damaged HDDs. The program can be installed on Windows operating systems and supports working with long file names and Cyrillic alphabet. Recovery instructions:

1. Download and install ZAR on your computer. It is advisable that the software is not loaded onto the damaged disk (on which scanning is planned).
2. Disable antivirus programs and close other applications. This will help reduce system load and increase scanning speed.
3. In the main window, click on the button "Data Recovery for Windows and Linux" so that the program finds all drives connected to the computer, removable media information.



4. Select the HDD or USB flash drive from the list (which you plan to access) and click "Next".



5. The scanning process will begin. As soon as the utility finishes its work, the screen will display the directories and individual files available for recovery.



6. Check the box next to the folders you want and click "Next" to overwrite the information.



7. Will open additional window, where you can configure file recording options.
8. In field "Destination" specify the path to the folder in which the information will be written.



9. After that click "Start copying the selected files" to start transferring data.

As soon as the program finishes working, the files can be freely used or rewritten to USB drives. Unlike other similar software, ZAR restores all data while maintaining the same directory structure.

Method 2: EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard

The trial version of the program is available for free download from the official website. The product is suitable for recovering data from damaged HDDs and then rewriting them to other media or Flash drives. Procedure:

1. Install the program on the computer from which you plan to recover files. To avoid data loss, do not download EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard onto a damaged drive.
2. Select a location to search for files on the faulty HDD. If you need to recover information from a stationary disk, select it from the list at the top of the program.



3. You can optionally enter a specific directory path. To do this, click on the block “ Specify a location" and using the button "Browse" select the desired folder. After that click "OK".



4. Click on the button "Scan" to start searching for files on the damaged media.



5. The results will be displayed on home page programs. Check the box next to the folders you want to return and click "Recover".



6. Specify the location on your computer where you plan to create a folder for the information found, and click "OK".

Method 3: R-Studio

Suitable for recovering information from any damaged media (flash drives, SD cards, hard drives). The program is a professional type and can be used on computers with operating system Windows. Operating instructions:

1. Download and install R-Studio on your computer. Connect a non-working HDD or other storage medium and run the program.
2. In the main R-Studio window, select required device and on the toolbar click "Scan".



3. An additional window will appear. Select a scan area if you want to check a specific area of ​​the disk. Additionally, specify the desired type of scanning (simple, detailed, quick). After that, click on the button "Scanning".



4. Information about the operation will be displayed on the right side of the program. Here you can monitor your progress and approximately the remaining time.



5. When the scan is completed, additional partitions will appear on the left side of R-Studio, next to the disk that was analyzed. Inscription "Recognized" means that the program was able to find the files.



6. Click on a section to view the contents of the found documents.

   

   Check the box necessary files and in the menu "File" select "Restore marked".



7. Specify the path to the folder where you plan to make a copy of the found files and click "Yes" to start copying.

After this, files can be freely opened and transferred to other logical drives and removable media. If you plan to scan a large HDD, the process may take more than an hour.

If your hard drive fails, you can still recover information from it. To do this, use special software and conduct a full system scan. To avoid data loss, try not to save found files to a faulty HDD, but use other devices for this purpose.